Self-disturbance in schizophrenia: a phenomenological approach to better understand our patients

Rob de Vries, Henriette D Heering, Lot Postmes, Saskia Goedhart, Herman N Sno, Lieuwe de Haan

Research output: Contribution to journalArticleAcademicpeer-review

17 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

A phenomenological approach explains the apparently unintelligible experiences of patients with schizophrenia as a disruption of the normal self-perception. Patients with schizophrenia suffer from a decline of "me," the background core of their experiences. Normally tacit experiences intrude into the forefront of their attention, and the sense that inner-world experiences are private diminishes. These patients lose the sense that they are the origin of their thoughts and actions; their self-evident network of meanings and a solid foundation of life disintegrate. Subsequently, their experiential world is transformed, alienated, intruded, and fragmented. In this article, a phenomenological investigation of the self-experiences and actions of 4 patients with schizophrenia is presented.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)12m01382
JournalThe primary care companion for CNS disorders
Volume15
Issue number1
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 2013

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